Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1887-09-09

pearance perfectly and completely I'M
moved. Nothing could touch his iron
nerves.
The moon went down; for a long while
she had been getting nearer and nearer to
the horizon, and now she finally sank and
left the world in darkness, save for faint
gray tinge in the eastern sky that palely
heralded the coming dawn.
Mr. Mackenzie stood, watch in hand, his
wife clinging to his arm and striving 70
stifie her sob5.
"Twenty minutes to four" he said; sit
ought to be light enough to attack at TWEEN
ty minutes past four. Captain Good had
better be moving; he will want three or
four minutes start
Good gave one final polish to his eye
glass, nodded to us in jocular sort of way
which / could not help feeling it must
have cost him something to muster up
and, ever polite, took off his steellined
cap to Mrs. Mackenzie, and started for his
position at the head of the kraal, to reach
which he had TO make a detour By some
paths unknown to the natives.
Just then one of the boys came in and
reported that everybody in Nasal camp,
with the exception of the two sentries who
were walking up and down in front of the
respective entrances, appeared to be fast
asleep. Then the rest of us took the road.
First came the guide, then Sir Henry, I'm
slopOgaas, Wakwafi Askari, and Nj. Mac
kenZie's two mission natives armed with
long spears and shields. ! followed inn
mediately after with AIphonse and five ma
tives, all armed with guns, and Mr.. Mac
kenzie brought up the rear with the six re
naming natives.
The cattle kraal where the Nasal were
camped lay at the foot of the hill on which
the house stood, or, roughly speaking,
about eight hundred yards from the mis-
sion buildings. The first five hundred
yards of this distance we trayersed quietly,
indeed, but at a good pace; after that we
crept on as silently as n leopard on his
prey, gliding like ghosts from bush to bush,
and from stone to stone. When had gone
n little way, CHANGED to look behind me
and saw the redoubtable AlphOnse stag
gering along with white face and trembling
knees, and his rifle, which was at full cock,
pointed directly at the small of my back.
Having halted and carefully put the rifle
at Safety" we started again; and all went
well till we were within one hundred yards
or so of the kraal, when his teeth began to
chatter in the most aggressive way.
IF you don't stop that | will kill yoG,"
! whispered savagely; for the idea of hav-
ing all our natives sacrificed to tooth
chattering French cook was too much for
me. began to fear that he would betray
ia, and heartily wished we had left him
behind
But, monsieur, | cannot help it," he
answered.; sit is the cold"
Here was Il dilemma; but fortunately |
devised plan. In the pocket of the coat
had on was small piece OF dirty rag that
| had used some time before to clean gun
with. Put this in your mouth" | whis-
pered again, giving him the rag; land if /
hear another sound you are u dead man"
I knew that that would stifie the clatter of
his worries. | must have looked as if |
meant what | said, for he instantly obeyed
me, and proceeded with IN oily corner of
rag hanging down his chin.
Then we Crept on again.
At last we were within fifty yards of the
kraal. Between us and it was an open
space of sloping grass, with only one mi
mosa bush and couple of tussocks of a
sort Of thistle for cover. We were still
hidden in fairly thick bush. 1t was begin
ming to grow light. The stars had puled
and II kind of sickly CLEAN played about
the east and was reflected on the oarth
We could see the outline Of the kraal clear
ly enough, and could also make out the
faint glimmer of the dying embers of the
Nasal camp fires. We halted and watched
for the sentry we knew was posted at the
opening. Presently he appeared u fine,
tall fellow, walking idly up and down
within five PAGES of the thOrn-stOpped en-
trance. We had hoped to catch him
mapping; but il was not to be. He seemed
particularly wide awake. IL we could not
kill that man. and kill him instantly, we
were lost. There we CrOuChed and watched
him. Presently UmslopOgaas, who was q
few PAGES ahead Of me, turned and made
n sign; and the next second | saw him 90
down on his stomach like n snake, and,
taking nm opportunity when the sentry's
head was turned, he began to work his
way through the grass without sound
The unconscious sentry began to hum q
little tune, and Umslopogaas crept on. He
reached the shelter of the mimosa bush
unpcrceived, and there waited. Still the
sentry walked up and down. Presently he
turned and looked over the wall into the
camp. Instantly the human snake who
got behind one of the tJlssocks OF the this
tlc-likc plant. reaching it rs the Elmoran
turned again AS he turned, his eye fell
upon this patch of thistles, and it seemed
to strike him MAT it did not look quite
right. He advanced n pace toward tt
halted, yawned stopped down, picked up
little pebble and threw it at it. 1t hit UNI
slopogaas upon the head luckily not upon
1. 4 lii, l.
would cave betrayed us. Luckily, too, the
shirt was brown and not bright steel, which
would certainly have been detected. APP
parently satisfied that there was nothing
wrong, he then gave over his investigations,
and contented himself with leaning ON his
spear and standing gazing idly at the tuft.
For Mt least three minutes Cd he stand
tGus, plunged apparently, into a gentle
rcrcric; and there we lay in the last ex-
trcnity of anxiety, expecting every moment
that we should be discovered or that some
uutoward accident would happen. could
hear Alphonse's teeth going like anything
on the oiled rag, and turning my head
round, made an awful face at him. But
am bound TO state that my own heart was
at much the same game as the Frenchman's
castancts, while the perSpiration was pour
ing from my body, causing the wash-leath-
erlined shirt to stick to me unpleasantly;
and altogether | was in the pitablc state
known by school boys as "bluo funk"
At last the ordeal came to an end. The
sentry glanced ut the east, and appeared to
note with satisfaction that his period of
duty was coming to an end-as indeed it
was, once and for all-for he rubbed his
hands and began to walk again briskly, to
warm himself
The moment his back was turned, the
long, black snake glided on again, and
reached the other thistle tuft, which was
within couple of PAGES of his return beat.
Back came the sentry, and strolled right
past the tuft, utterly unconscious of the
presence that was crouching behind it.
Had he looked down he could scarcely
have failed to see; but he did not do So
lie passed. and then his hidden enemy
erected himself, and with outstretched
hand followed in his tracks.
\ moment moro, and just rs the Elmor-
an was about to turn, the great Zulu made
spring, and in the growingl light we could
see the long, lean hands close round the
Masais throat. Then followed conyul-
Siye twining of the two dark bodies, and
in another second | saw the Nasai's head
bent back, and heard a sharp crack, some
thing like that of dry twig swapping. and
he fell down upon the ground, his limbs
moving systematically.
Umslopogaas had put out all his iron
strength and broken the warriors neck.
For moment he knelt upon his victim,
still gripping his throat, till he was sure
hnt I, Sy4 20